Chapter 35

~Grace~

Alex was losing. He panted heavily, hunched forward as blood dripped from the cuts the shadowy figures gave him, staining the grass below.

I bit my lip hard, nervous for him. I hated to see him hurt, and I didn’t want to see him lose to Liam of all people.

While there weren’t any rules set up for the duel, it definitely seemed like Liam had an unfair advantage, using dark magic.

To my surprise, I didn’t hear much gossip from the crowd about Liam’s unhonorable fighting, but maybe they just wanted to see Alex fall at any cost. The wolves still loyal to Liam believed Alex was the cause of all of his problems.

I pitied those people, for putting their trust into Liam wholeheartedly. He’d never give them anything back for their loyalty. I learned that the hard way.

“Come on, get up!” I screamed at Alex, who had stopped to catch his breath a little too long for my liking.

I saw him tilt his ears toward me, and an annoyed flick of his tail before he rose tall once more. The crowd murmured. They were sure he would fall soon.

I hoped with everything in me that he’d push through.

Two more figures rose from the ground, flanking Alex. His eyes were fixed ahead, narrowed on Liam’s smirking face.

Oh no, he didn’t see them!

I grasped the moonstone necklace around my neck tightly, biting my lip. If I helped Alex, would that be considered outside interference, and the fight would be dropped?

My heart pounded faster as the figures moved forward with incredible speed. I clasped my hand over my mouth to keep myself from screaming out at him, too afraid of messing everything up.

They grew long, pointed arms, and moved in with alarming precision.

Then, at the last second, Alex made an incredible maneuver, jumping over both figures and nimbly dodging their blades.

I sighed in relief, and I couldn’t help but laugh. That was incredible! How did he know they were there?

Just then, the two figures flickered and their bodies distorted and grew wider as they lost their form, disappearing into black smoke.

The field was silent, as everything stood still. Alex was grinning, which looked terrifying in his wolf form, his sharp teeth bared to the crowd.

How… Alex must have done something to them to make them disappear! But what?

Unless Liam had called them off?

I glanced over at Liam’s face, which twisted into a red rage. I guess not.

Feeling a surge of pride, I cheered loudly for Alex, which earned me many glares from the people next to me.

I ignored them, too excited that Alex seemed to have figured something out. This might mean he’d gain the upper hand!

While Liam’s fury distracted him, I noticed Alex licking some of the more prominent wounds on his body. I gave a small smile. Yes, the healing powers in his saliva! Once he healed some of his greater injuries, he really would turn things around!

However, this break didn’t last long. Liam roared in rage, and he disappeared from the end of the field to right next to Alex.

What was he up to? I felt a sharp surge of panic. There was no way he’d get this close without having a crazy trump card!

Suddenly, black tendrils exploded out from Liam’s body and encased the field. They wriggled toward the sky, many of them wrapping tightly around Alex as he dangled in the air, tearing at the tendrils, only to be wrapped up by another.

Liam laughed maniacally. He seemed to control the tendrils, as they sprouted from his back, his hands held high in the air.

Oh, no… How could Alex get out of this?!

He tore and slashed through the tendrils like jello, but there were too many. It was like cutting a lawn with scissors, one blade at a time.

Suddenly, I saw the furious look in Alex’s eyes as he grabbed tightly onto the tendril that wrapped around his torso. He held on tight as he moved hand over hand, pulling himself down toward Liam at incredible speed.

Liam was so caught up in the tendrils flailing about that he didn’t notice Alex right above his head, claws raised to strike.

With furious slashing, Alex severed the tendrils from Liam’s back in a blur, and Liam barely had time to turn before Alex slashed him across the face, sending him tumbling across the field.

I gasped. His first hit on Liam the whole fight, and it was a doozy. Liam hadn’t even been shifted to protect himself, and he took on the full force of a Lycan’s claws.

Liam lay on the ground, completely still.

There was a moment of stillness where it felt like nobody breathed. Even the birds stayed grounded as time ticked by.

A minute passed, and Beta Samuel slowly walked forward and knelt beside Liam. He looked him over for a moment before standing back up.

“Alpha King Liam is defeated!” He shouted, and if I wasn’t mistaken, I caught a hint of a smile on his face.

The crowd gasped and wailed in disappointment, but I only found myself running right onto the field, straight for Alex.

He had shifted back, and now I could really see how bloody he was without all the fur. But, that didn’t stop me from jumping into his arms. He caught me, but staggered back with an “oof” as I hugged him tightly.

“You won!” I squealed in unrestrained excitement.

Alex looked down at me with weary eyes. “Was there any doubt?”

I chose not to answer.

We both looked toward Liam, where a crowd now gathered, huddling around him. As much as I hated him, I did feel a pang of worry. I hoped that hit wasn’t too hard…

“He’ll be fine,” Alex said next to me. I looked up at him in surprise. It was like he read my mind.

“I only hit him hard enough to knock some sense into him. And I put my claws away.”

I didn’t know what to say. Alex… showing restraint? Was it an act of kindness or mercy? I truly never thought Alex was capable, especially not against his worst enemy. What changed?

Alex gave me a gentle smile, and held out his hand, motioning me to come with him. I took his hand, which felt sticky with blood, and we walked through the crowd to reach Liam.

Alex stayed at the edge of the crowd, and I slowly stepped forward. Liam was sitting up, a red mark across his face which quickly seemed to be turning purple. Samuel sat beside him, holding him upright.

At the sight of me, Liam’s face crumpled, and he rushed forward, holding me in a tight embrace.

Stunned, I stood frozen, my hands out, not sure if I should reciprocate.

“Grace-” He sobbed, and I could feel hot tears on my shoulder. “Grace, oh my god, I’m so sorry. I-I messed everything up.”

I said nothing. It was the first time I ever heard anything even close to an apology or an admittance of his betrayal, and my heart ached. I had been wanting this moment for so long.

“I’m so sorry. I should never have cheated on you and pushed you away. You were the perfect Luna. My Luna. I should have never let you go,” he continued.

I was stunned. Had he really felt this way the whole time? Why had he hidden it under a face of anger and hatred for so long?

“I just want to start over.” There was a pause in his words, his voice quivering. “Please?”

He said it so pathetically, as if he knew there was no way I’d ever say yes.

I took a deep breath, and slowly drew my arms up around him, giving him a hug in return.

“Liam… I forgive you. You did a lot of wrong things, but I don’t hate you for it. I hope you learn from your mistakes and grow to be a better man, the man everyone thought you were,” I said slowly.

Liam’s sobs grew harder, and his grip on me tightened.

“...but we’re done. I never want to get back together with you. What we had… it was never as good as we thought.”

He continued crying. I pursed my lips together, taking another deep breath. I felt… strangely calm. At peace. I had finally accomplished what I set out to do.

There was a long moment before Liam responded.

“Well, I lost. I hope you find someone who treats you better than I did.”

He let me go, and stepped back, holding me by the shoulders with a tearful smile. Regret and pain was all over his face, and I gave him a gentle look back.

“Grace Windsong,” he began, “I release you as my mate.”

I gasped and reached up to my neck as a tingling sensation prickled at my skin, and I felt the mark disappear.

It worked! I was free!

My heart soared with delight. I was finally a free woman.

I turned to Alex to share my joy, when my heart dropped. Alex suddenly fell limp, dropping to the ground like a brick.